Throwback: Aidy Bryant interview from 2020 on 'Shrill' TV show
"If you haven’t found a community, make your own. Find your own venue. Put together your own lineup and do a monthly or weekly show so you can create a space. That’s what I did at some point."
Aidy Bryant is much more than just a comedian on Saturday Night Life. She’s the star, co-writer and an executive producer of Shrill, the hilarious Hulu comedy-drama series has us all in cahoots.
The show follows a body-positive millennial named Annie on her journey to self-confidence and career savvy. In the new season, Bryant’s character steps outside of her usual job role to write a viral article called “Hello, I’m Fat,” which her editor (played by John Cameron Mitchell) writes a rebuttal, called “Hello, I’m Healthy.” Needless to say, a workplace war ensues.
The show is loosely based on writer Lindy West bestselling collection of essays, Shrill: Notes From a Loud Woman, which was released in 2016. The narrative of the book continues onscreen, from experiencing fat shaming to dating, friendship and family woes as a fat girl trying to thrive and survive in society. Bryant, who wears patterned dresses better than most of us, is a magnetic force in the show, whether she’s making her booty call step up to become her first-ever boyfriend, to having sex in the office, staking out her online troll or confronting her boss on his discrimination. Bryant is co-executive producer alongside Lorne Michaels and Elizabeth Banks for the show, which has Annie set on changing her life, not her body, with her witty best friend played by Lolly Adefope (who never fails to entertain).
As the show gears up for its second season premiere on January 24, Shondaland spoke to Bryant about weight, Twitter, Sarah Huckabee Sanders and taking the dog out for a walk to escape it all.
Nadja Sayej: Why is this season crazier than the last? It’s hilarious.
Aidy Bryant: I love this season so much; I might like it better than the first season. I feel like we hit our stride, and we had eight episodes instead of six, so we were able to do things we were hoping to do, like explore Fran’s character a bit more, go deeper into Annie’s aspirations and relationships, so I’m so happy with it.
I loved it! my favorite part—besides the car singalong to Celine Dion—was exploring the relationship she has with Ryan (played by Luka Jones), saying, no, I’m not just going to be your side chick booty call, just because of how things were before.
My instinct and with the feedback we had was ‘get rid of the guy, now that Annie is confident after the first season, dump him.’ But I also feel like, that’s not how things go, quite often. Especially for someone who has been dealing with insecurities, it’s hard to let go of someone. In this season, he does step up to become a better partner to Annie. They really try to make it work, and in many ways, they do make it work. But for Annie, things are finally working with her at work, her friends and family, that the question is: Should she let go of this and push for something more? The last place people sometimes find their confidence is in their romantic relationships.
I was interviewing Nicole Byer recently, and told me that Shrill is the only mainstream show where fat people have sex, can you believe that?
Ha! I don’t know if that’s true, I haven’t done all the numbers, but I would believe it. It’s crazy that if there are sex scenes with fat people, its ‘joke sex.’ There’s no dignity to it. they’re smashing tables in how fat they are and their horniness, which is just a bummer. It always made me feel bad when I saw stuff like that.
The show introduces so many important things to a mainstream audience, what is the most important thing that it does?
Its hard to say, but so many people have different takeaways, but one thing that has touched me, is that a lot of people, especially thin people have said ‘it made me think about how I speak about other people’s bodies.’ That’s what its about, in so many ways. Its about creating empathy, sympathy and compassion for other people. Being more thoughtful. What feels like a tossed off comment to you can really cut someone or penetrate who they are as a person. I think we do feel for people in the show, whether it’s Annie or anyone else, and you care for them.
I’m reading an old Joan Rivers book right now where she refers to Lena Dunham’s body as “homely.” I wonder if she could get away with that with standup comedy or mainstream comedy, at all. Do you think?
I think, but I don’t know. I feel like, in a lot of ways, it’s definitely changing. Shrill has helped make feel that conversation feel less okay. I think, generally speaking it’s good to not comment on anyone’s body, good or bad. I think it’s a personal relationship. I’ve been in a position where people say to me: “Wow, you look great! You look like you lost weight.” And maybe I have or haven’t, but either way, it puts you in a position, like ‘Don’t assess me.’ You know? It’s a tricky, complicated thing. There’s a lot of feelings about their bodies. That’s ultimately what we’re trying to get at here.
I think it’s definitely working. Do you ever regret quitting Twitter or no?
Not a day. [Laughs]. Never. I have to say, it just wasn’t worth it to me, I do have Instagram. I get feedback about the show there and it means a lot to me. I wasn’t finding anything worthwhile on Twitter.
Trolling and cyberbullying becomes more of an issue in this second season, have you experienced that on Instagram, or no?
I experienced it on Twitter before I got off there because I played Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Saturday Night Live. The thing that always blew me away, was that I would play her on the show, I would be inundated with tweets saying I was a fat, ugly pig who didn’t have the right to play someone as ‘brave and smart’ as Sarah Huckabee Sanders. The other half were tweeting at me, saying I was too ‘beautiful and good’ to play someone as ‘vile and fat’ as Sarah Huckabee Sanders. It was brutal to me, it made me sad on both sides that she was being reduced to her looks, and so was I. it wasn’t good for any reason. I have the odd random person calling me a “fat piece of shit” or a “fat pig” or telling me that I “eat hamburgers” on Instagram, but it feels less targeted. I certainly haven’t had the targeted harassment that Lindy or Leslie Jones had. These are people who I know and love. When you see stuff like that, it’s pretty revolting.
How do you plan on staying sane during the 2020 election?
I try to keep my news sources dry and straightforward. I tend to read a lot more than I watch. That helps me, it feels less sensationalized and more straightforward. It’s definitely hard. A part of Saturday Night Live is engaging with current events on another level, its important to represent what’s happening in our country and our culture. That changes my relationship to it, rather than just watching the news.
How do you practice self-care? I imagine your life is super hectic right now.
It’s crazy, I do have two complicated jobs that happen at the same time; Shrill and SNL. I try to get away from my phone, away from the screen. I usually go to the park, go for a walk, take my dog out or go for a walk with my husband. I find that getting away from the screen helps me a lot.
When you are by the screen, what do you read or watch?
Oh gosh, it depends. I don’t have a ton of time, so when I get a day off, I end up binging something often something not of quality. Usually, it’s Love Island or Real Housewives of New Jersey. Partially because its just brain candy and I don’t have to think that deeply about it. Love Island is just horny people making out and I’m like, ‘okay, I can watch this.’ [Laughs]. I listen to a lot of podcasts, like history podcasts. I’m a homebody.
What do you think is comedy is for you? How do you do it?
Oh my gosh, I think I would have different answers for different years of my life. But for me right now, the key is just to have fun. I feel like the audience can always tell when you’re having fun. It always really translates. I think some of my early years on SNL, I was there, working really hard, but scared. Now, I’m having fun.
What advice do you have to young, aspiring women comedians currently working for free in their local comedy circuits?
If you haven’t found a community, make your own. Find your own venue. Put together your own lineup and do a monthly or weekly show so you can create a space. That’s what I did at some point. I did improv in Chicago in 2005 and 2006, and I was the only woman on a team of 10 men. It didn’t always feel that great to me, then I joined all female team and that’s where I where I cut my teeth as a performer.
Shrill is a show that really makes plus-size women like myself feel less alone.
More than any review, it’s more important to know that it reaches women. This is the best interview!
Initially published on shondaland.com.